Thursday, December 26, 2013

The NBA On Christmas Day Open Thread: Long Live Nick Young
Watching Nick Young play basketball last season for the Philadelphia 76ers was one of the hidden joys of an otherwise worthless season. Behind Jrue Holiday’s breakout All-Star campaign, the unpredictability of the one they call ‘Swaggy P’ was reason enough to tune in.

But holy hell, I never thought he’d become a national phenomenon. Yet here we are, with the talent-deprived Lakers keeping pace with the two-time defending NBA champion Miami Heat on Christmas day … and all the talk is about Nick Young, his ridiculous nickname and the fact that the poor man’s version of Kobe Bryant is leading Kobe’s team in scoring. This is stupid. And crazy. And magnificent. Just like Nick freakin Young. His Kobe-sized confidence is impossible to ignore, and damn near impossible to dislike. Particularly when he’s not on your favorite team.

Long live Nick Young.

Watching
Nick Young play basketball last season for the Philadelphia 76ers was
one of the hidden joys of an otherwise worthless season. Behind Jrue
Holiday’s breakout All-Star campaign, the unpredictability of the one
they call ‘Swaggy P’ was reason enough to tune in.
But holy hell, I never thought he’d become a national phenomenon. Yet
here we are, with the talent-deprived Lakers keeping pace with the
two-time defending NBA champion Miami Heat on Christmas day … and all
the talk is about Nick Young, his ridiculous nickname and the fact that
the poor man’s version of Kobe Bryant is leading Kobe’s team in scoring.
This is stupid. And crazy. And magnificent. Just like Nick freakin
Young. His Kobe-sized confidence is impossible to ignore, and damn near
impossible to dislike. Particularly when he’s not on your favorite team.
Long live Nick Young.
- See more at:
http://www.thesportsfanjournal.com/sports/basketball/nba-christmas-day-open-thread-sleeved-uniforms-happens/#sthash.JQDtJyAx.dpuf

Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Brotherly Love From A Philadelphian

I love Roy Halladay.
As Alex pointed out, we tend to analyze and overanalyze our athletes
these days, and that’s all well and good. We should use advanced
metrics, more details and learn as much as we possibly can about our
athletes.
But Alex is right — with Roy, it’s as simple love. The love of the
game. The love of the work. The love of a player who always shows up,
always works his tail off, always takes the ball and always gives it
what he’s got — which just so happened to be better than anything else
anyone else had on most nights.
Yes, Roy Hallady was only in Philadelphia for four of his 16 MLB
seasons, and injuries and age made him a stranger in the final two. But I
love Roy Halladay nonetheless, and I love him for so many reasons.
For starters, Roy Halladay chose to come to Philadelphia. Yes, he was
technically traded to the Phillies, but he was the one who chose
Philadelphia as his destination. The best pitcher in baseball, the one
Toronto player who was the envy of the Yankees and Red Sox and everyone
else, chose to come to Philadelphia in his quest for that elusive World
Series ring.
That alone made Phillies fans so happy that some brilliant genius started a blog with the express purpose of going to the zoo with him.
The second he donned those red pinstripes, every Phillies fans
imagined more parades down Broad Street, a dynasty led by the best
pitcher in baseball. We had heard all about Roy Halladay, but we only
knew what we heard. I hadn’t watched much of Halladay over the years,
him playing for an American League squad that didn’t exactly conjure good memories for Phillies fans. But the expectations were so sky-high it would be near impossible for anyone to meet them.
Anyone but Roy Halladay, that is. Because not only did Roy live up to
expectations, but he far, far exceeded them. In his first season, all
he did was toss a perfect game, win a Cy Young,
dominate from start to finish and lead the Phillies to the best record
in all of baseball. Then, in his long-awaited postseason debut, he no-hit the Cincinnati Reds and later staved off elimination pitching with a pulled groin.
It was far and away the greatest pitching season I’ve ever seen from a Phillie, and he damn near did it again in 2011.
Roy Halladay was perfect. Roy Halladay was masterful. And Roy
Halladay made everyone believe he could do damn near anything. He struck
out batters yet was economical with his pitches. Walks were a
four-letter word for him. He threw more complete games, more innings
than all the rest. And he just kept going and going and going, giving
his team not only a good chance to win every five days, but an absurdly
great chance to win.
Watching him the past two seasons struggle with injury and age and command was one of the most difficult things to take, witnessing a legend fade.
Here was the workhorse who made us believe, the workhorse who made Blue
Jays fans believe and Phillies fans believe and baseball fans believe,
failing to be what he always was.
But these past two seasons haven’t change a damn thing. Halladay
— injured, aged, battered — kept going out there, kept taking the ball,
kept working his ass off and kept making no excuses. For 16 seasons, he
dominated the way few ever have. And in five more years, he should be taking his rightful place in Cooperstown.
This morning, Roy Halladay took out an ad in the Philadelphia Daily News
thanking the Phillies and the fans, being the class act that he is. But
really, he shouldn’t be thanking us. We all should be thanking him.
I love Roy Halladay, and I sure as shit would love to go to the zoo with him. — Joe aka @RevPaulRevere
- See more at: http://www.thesportsfanjournal.com/sports/baseball/roy-halladay-workhorse-made-believe/2/#sthash.gYBPF6Vr.dpuf

Brotherly Love From A Philadelphian

I love Roy Halladay.

As Alex pointed out, we tend to analyze and overanalyze our athletes these days, and that’s all well and good. We should use advanced metrics, more details and learn as much as we possibly can about our athletes.

But Alex is right — with Roy, it’s as simple love. The love of the game. The love of the work. The love of a player who always shows up, always works his tail off, always takes the ball and always gives it what he’s got — which just so happened to be better than anything else anyone else had on most nights.

Yes, Roy Hallady was only in Philadelphia for four of his 16 MLB seasons, and injuries and age made him a stranger in the final two. But I love Roy Halladay nonetheless, and I love him for so many reasons.

For starters, Roy Halladay chose to come to Philadelphia. Yes, he was technically traded to the Phillies, but he was the one who chose Philadelphia as his destination. The best pitcher in baseball, the one Toronto player who was the envy of the Yankees and Red Sox and everyone else, chose to come to Philadelphia in his quest for that elusive World Series ring.

The second he donned those red pinstripes, every Phillies fans imagined more parades down Broad Street, a dynasty led by the best pitcher in baseball. We had heard all about Roy Halladay, but we only knew what we heard. I hadn’t watched much of Halladay over the years, him playing for an American League squad that didn’t exactly conjure good memories for Phillies fans. But the expectations were so sky-high it would be near impossible for anyone to meet them.

It was far and away the greatest pitching season I’ve ever seen from a Phillie, and he damn near did it again in 2011.

Roy Halladay was perfect. Roy Halladay was masterful. And Roy Halladay made everyone believe he could do damn near anything. He struck out batters yet was economical with his pitches. Walks were a four-letter word for him. He threw more complete games, more innings than all the rest. And he just kept going and going and going, giving his team not only a good chance to win every five days, but an absurdly great chance to win.

Watching him the past two seasons struggle with injury and age and command was one of the most difficult things to take, witnessing a legend fade. Here was the workhorse who made us believe, the workhorse who made Blue Jays fans believe and Phillies fans believe and baseball fans believe, failing to be what he always was.

But these past two seasons haven’t change a damn thing. Halladay — injured, aged, battered — kept going out there, kept taking the ball, kept working his ass off and kept making no excuses. For 16 seasons, he dominated the way few ever have. And in five more years, he should be taking his rightful place in Cooperstown.

I love Roy Halladay, and I sure as shit would love to go to the zoo with him.

Brotherly Love From A Philadelphian

I love Roy Halladay.
As Alex pointed out, we tend to analyze and overanalyze our athletes
these days, and that’s all well and good. We should use advanced
metrics, more details and learn as much as we possibly can about our
athletes.
But Alex is right — with Roy, it’s as simple love. The love of the
game. The love of the work. The love of a player who always shows up,
always works his tail off, always takes the ball and always gives it
what he’s got — which just so happened to be better than anything else
anyone else had on most nights.
Yes, Roy Hallady was only in Philadelphia for four of his 16 MLB
seasons, and injuries and age made him a stranger in the final two. But I
love Roy Halladay nonetheless, and I love him for so many reasons.
For starters, Roy Halladay chose to come to Philadelphia. Yes, he was
technically traded to the Phillies, but he was the one who chose
Philadelphia as his destination. The best pitcher in baseball, the one
Toronto player who was the envy of the Yankees and Red Sox and everyone
else, chose to come to Philadelphia in his quest for that elusive World
Series ring.
That alone made Phillies fans so happy that some brilliant genius started a blog with the express purpose of going to the zoo with him.
The second he donned those red pinstripes, every Phillies fans
imagined more parades down Broad Street, a dynasty led by the best
pitcher in baseball. We had heard all about Roy Halladay, but we only
knew what we heard. I hadn’t watched much of Halladay over the years,
him playing for an American League squad that didn’t exactly conjure good memories for Phillies fans. But the expectations were so sky-high it would be near impossible for anyone to meet them.
Anyone but Roy Halladay, that is. Because not only did Roy live up to
expectations, but he far, far exceeded them. In his first season, all
he did was toss a perfect game, win a Cy Young,
dominate from start to finish and lead the Phillies to the best record
in all of baseball. Then, in his long-awaited postseason debut, he no-hit the Cincinnati Reds and later staved off elimination pitching with a pulled groin.
It was far and away the greatest pitching season I’ve ever seen from a Phillie, and he damn near did it again in 2011.
Roy Halladay was perfect. Roy Halladay was masterful. And Roy
Halladay made everyone believe he could do damn near anything. He struck
out batters yet was economical with his pitches. Walks were a
four-letter word for him. He threw more complete games, more innings
than all the rest. And he just kept going and going and going, giving
his team not only a good chance to win every five days, but an absurdly
great chance to win.
Watching him the past two seasons struggle with injury and age and command was one of the most difficult things to take, witnessing a legend fade.
Here was the workhorse who made us believe, the workhorse who made Blue
Jays fans believe and Phillies fans believe and baseball fans believe,
failing to be what he always was.
But these past two seasons haven’t change a damn thing. Halladay
— injured, aged, battered — kept going out there, kept taking the ball,
kept working his ass off and kept making no excuses. For 16 seasons, he
dominated the way few ever have. And in five more years, he should be taking his rightful place in Cooperstown.
This morning, Roy Halladay took out an ad in the Philadelphia Daily News
thanking the Phillies and the fans, being the class act that he is. But
really, he shouldn’t be thanking us. We all should be thanking him.
I love Roy Halladay, and I sure as shit would love to go to the zoo with him. — Joe aka @RevPaulRevere
- See more at: http://www.thesportsfanjournal.com/sports/baseball/roy-halladay-workhorse-made-believe/2/#sthash.gYBPF6Vr.dpuf

Monday, December 2, 2013

This past week Villanova traveled down to the Bahamas for
the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament. The Wildcats' journey through the tournament led them
to a Friday night semifinal showdown against second-ranked Kansas. I love
Villanova basketball, and even I thought that the Cats had a 0% chance of winning
that game. Kansas was just too talented, and especially too big, for the
Wildcats to have a shot to compete with the Jayhawks.

And five minutes into the game, my lack of confidence was
being justified. 'Nova trailed 11-2 and was something like 0-7 from the field.
I was prepared to take in a long, frustrating game. Even though I had no
expectations for the game, it is never fun to watch your team get completely
out-classed and overwhelmed.

But then things started to change. A couple buckets went
down. The team seemed to settle in a little bit. Slowly you could feel the tide
start to change, and that change was reflected on the scoreboard. That early
11-2 deficit turned into a 29-22 Villanova lead at the half. As cold and out of
sync as 'Nova was to start the game, Kansas was to end the half.

Much credit goes to coach Jay Wright for the turnaround. For
much of the half, Villanova played a hounding, smothering, three-quarter court
trap. The trap was effective at forcing turnovers, and even when it didn’t
force a turnover, it never allowed Kansas to get into the flow of their
offense. Stan Van Gundy, who was calling the game for NBCSN (and who did a
fantastic job by the way), mentioned how Kansas is used to teams sagging off of
them and allowing them to move the ball freely and shoot the jumper, choosing
to force them to make jump shots rather than give their incredible athletes an opportunity to drive to the basket or to dump the ball into their post players,
where against many college teams they have a sizable size advantage.
Sizable size advantage, that sounds weird, but I digress.

Villanova would have none of that, instead
pressuring to the max, making Kansas work to get the ball up the court and
guarding super tight, which forced freshman phenom Andrew Wiggins into several
traveling turnovers.

So at halftime, my whole perspective changed. My team
had a seven-point lead. I certainly wasn’t putting the W in the bag, but I was
feeling confident and letting myself entertain thoughts of an upset.

The second half was a half of runs, with the teams taking
turns bursting and then answering. 'Nova had managed to increase its halftime
lead to 11 with about 7 minutes remaining, but the lead evaporated following a
13-1 Kansas run. The Wildcats looked out of gas, and with the frenetic defensive pace
they were playing in the first half, no one could blame them.

With the lead relinquished, I had lost all hope. In the end,
Goliath was too big, too strong. My team had put up a valiant effort, acquitted
themselves well, given hope for the rest of the season, but an upset was not in
the cards. I won’t let such doubt absorb me when it comes to this team
anymore.

With 13 seconds remaining, Villanova was inbounding the ball
from its offensive baseline. Darrun Hilliard and Dylan Ennis had been the
best outside performers for the Cats all night, so I expected the ball to go
to one of them and let them make a play, or send it inside to JayVaughn
Pinkston. Instead, sophomore Ryan Arcidiacono (who hadn’t made a shot from the
field all night and had just one point on a free-throw in the opening minutes)
curled off of a couple screens to come free near the corner. He caught the
pass, rose up and drained a three-pointer to give Villanova a two-point lead. I
was going wild, but there were still 10 seconds left and a plethora of
talented Kansas players who could make a play. But Frank Mason missed a
three-pointer, James Bell got the rebound, and he iced the game with two clutch
free throws with just seconds left.

It was an incredible game, and I was going wild. Villanova is
now 4-1 in its last five games against top-5 opponents.

One other tactical
move I want to point out besides the trap is the decision to front the post
most of the game. Villanova was outsized at two and sometimes three positions
the entire game. Obviously there would be times where Kansas tried to exploit
that. And on countless occasions, you would see a Kansas guard holding the ball,
looking into the post. And you would see a smaller Villanova player fronting
his man, denying an entry pass. It proved to be effective throughout most of
the game, and I thought it was another great call by coach Wright. And props to
freshman Josh Hart, who spent much of his night doing the dirty work down in
the post defensively, and who did a great job.

Villanova moved on to face 23rd-ranked Iowa in
the championship game. I didn’t know what to expect after the energy that had
been expended the night before. After a solid start, turnovers started to
plague the Wildcats and they fell behind.

Somehow the Wildcats were able to erase a 15-point second-half deficit to force overtime and managed to pull out a gutty overtime victory
to claim the Battle 4 Atlantis championship.

Villanova fans have to be
incredibly proud of the toughness and energy their team was able to show in two
hard-fought games on back-to-back nights. It is a great asset to have two
quality wins, including a signature win, just seven games into the season. With
their great run in the Bahamas, Villanova has gone from unranked to 19th
in the USA Today Coaches Poll and 14th in the AP poll. The rest of
the season should be pretty damn exciting.